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On June 2, Queen Elizabeth celebrates 60 years on the throne, and throughout the Commonwealth her subjects will be raising a glass in the monarch’s honour.

Indeed, we suspect that the Queen herself may well celebrate her Diamond Jubilee with her favourite drink of Bombay Sapphire gin with Dubonnet red vermouth, lemon and ice.

Then again, she may instead prefer to shake things up with some of the celebratory cocktails that have been created especially for the occasion, especially in London, centre of the four-day-long weekend of Jubilee celebrations, June 2 to 5.

For instance, at the Goring Hotel, where Kate Middleton stayed the night before she wed Prince William, bar manager Brian Kinsella has introduced The 1952, a Hendrick’s gin martini shaken with silver leaf and served in a sparkling Swarovski crystal glass. It costs £120 ($193 Cdn) a drink, but customers can keep the glass to toast the Queen at home later.

The magnificent Connaught Bar in Mayfair has created two special drinks — Her Majesty (muddled pineapple, vermouth, maraschino liqueur and sparkling wine) and the Queen Elizabeth (gin, Dubonnet, sherry, Benedictine and absinthe). The West End’s trendy new Archer Street is serving a Jubilee Cocktail of gin, rhubarb liqueur and Lady Grey tea in a vintage teapot, while the Rib Room is celebrating the “Ginbelee” with Lapsang Souchong tea-infused Bombay Sapphire gin.

And the Savoy Hotel, which famously created a drink called The Blushing Monarch for Diana, Princess of Wales, is offering The Savoy Jubilee Valentine Cocktail (passion fruit, gin, limoncello and banana and strawberry liqueurs), though we suspect the Queen herself might prefer the Diamond Jubilee whisky produced by John Walker and Sons. It’s blended from rare whiskies that have been aging since at least 1952, finished in casks of oak from the Queen’s Sandringham estate and bottled in a stunning Baccarat crystal decanter for a right royal price of £100,000 ($161,000).

London isn’t the only place serving up royal cocktails for the Jubilee.

Closer to home, at Victoria’s Fairmont Empress, which is one of the Queen’s favourite hotels, guests can enjoy the rose-scented, gin-based The Queen Cocktail in the Bengal Lounge. (The bartenders can make you the Queen’s favourite gin-and-Dubonnet drink — they’ve had plenty of practice preparing it for Her Majesty.)

And here in Vancouver, it is, as the slogan goes, “Pimm’s o’clock.”

After all, no celebration so quintessentially English would be complete without a taste of Pimm’s, that oh-so-very British blend of spirits, liqueurs and extracts typically served with sparkling lemonade, cucumber, mint and fresh fruit.

Pimm’s was introduced in 1823 when James Pimm, the owner of a fashionable London oyster bar, created a tonic to cut the bitterness of English gin. His first “cup” — Pimm’s No. 1 — was a blend of gin, quinine and herbs; over the years, five more cups were added, based on Scotch, brandy, rum, rye and vodka. Today, only No. 1 is still in wide production, and it’s the only one available in B.C.

Unless, that is, you stop by Vancouver’s Chambar Restaurant (562 Beatty St., www.chambar.com), where bar manager Jacob Sweetapple has been making his own barrel-aged Pimm’s.

“The recipe starts with a whole bunch of gin,” he explains. “Beefeater is definitely the base to my Pimm’s.”

To the gin he adds citrus peel and spices that range from cinchona bark to cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and cassia root. Then, he says, “The sweetening notes come from Punt e Mes and Maraschino liqueur. I use my homemade cherry bitters. And then I use a bitter, Angostura or Fee’s Whiskey Barrel Aged Bitters.”

He ages the mixture in a two-litre barrel for 28 to 34 days, making three batches a year, starting in March. “And then,” he says, “we’re ready to come into summer with Pimm’s.”

Sweetapple’s Pimm’s is delicious on its own over ice, but it’s intended for mixed drinks, such as The Queen’s Cobbler he created for the Jubilee (see recipe).

A “fan of Pimm’s,” he’s also a fan of the Queen, even though he hails from Australia. “I watch the royal weddings and things like that. Those are momentous events in our life.”

Especially when you enjoy them with a glass of Pimm’s in hand.

Berry Shrub

A shrub is a refreshing drink based on vinegar, which used to be popular in the 19th century. It’s coming back into style for the first time since Queen Victoria was on the throne. Here’s how Sweetapple made the version he uses in The Queen’s Cobbler.

2/3 cup (160 mL) fresh raspberries

2/3 cup (160 mL) fresh blackberries

½ cup (125 mL) white sugar

Place berries and sugar in a non-reactive bowl or jar. Mix well, cover and place somewhere cool and dark to macerate for four days.

Place the macerated berries in a large saucepan and add:

2/3 cup (160 mL) water

1¼ cup (310 mL) Punt de Mes

¼ cup (60 mL) balsamic vinegar

1 cinnamon stick

2 pieces of star anise

4 cloves

Bring to a boil; reduce heat to a low simmer for 30 minutes. Remove from heat, strain through cheesecloth, cool, cover and refrigerate for up to two weeks.

Makes about 1½ cups (375 mL)

The Queen’s Cobbler

Jacob Sweetapple, bar manager at Chambar Restaurant, created this recipe to celebrate the Queen’s Jubilee and to highlight his homemade, barrel-aged Pimm’s. However, home bartenders can use Pimm’s No. 1 available at B.C. Liquor Stores and still make a deliciously refreshing drink. Just don’t skip the garnishes — they add compelling aromatic notes to the cocktail.

1/3 cup (80 mL) Pimm’s No. 1

1 tablespoon (15 mL) Berry Shrub (see companion recipe)

2 teaspoons (10 mL) fresh lime juice

soda water

sliced cucumber, fresh berries and basil leaf for garnish

Fill a tall glass with crushed ice. Place Pimm’s, shrub and lime juice in a cocktail shaker with ice, shake well and double strain into the ice-filled glass. Top with soda, then garnish with sliced cucumber, fresh berries and a basil leaf.

Serves 1.

The Queen Cocktail

The Fairmont Empress Hotel in Victoria has had a long relationship with the Queen, the Queen Mum and cocktails. In honour of the Jubilee celebrations, the hotel’s bar staff created this floral take on a classic gin cocktail. Pip pip!

1½ ounces (45 mL) Rose Petal Infused Victoria Gin (see note)

¾ ounce (22 mL) fresh lemon juice

½ ounce (15 mL) simple syrup (see note)

splash of soda water

Place gin, lemon and simple syrup in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake hard for at least 10 seconds. Strain into a cocktail glass, top with a splash of soda, and garnish with a lemon wheel.

Serves 1

Note: To make the Rose Petal Infused Gin, pour an entire bottle of Victoria gin into a glass jug. Add 2 cups (500 mL) dried rose petals — make sure they are food safe and haven’t been sprayed with chemicals — and stir until they are all submerged. Let steep for 24 hours exactly (be sure to mark the time). Strain through a coffee filter, making sure to squeeze all the gin from the petals. Pour gin back into the bottle and allow to sit for another 24 hours before using. Store in a cool, dark place.

To make simple syrup, place equal amounts of sugar and water in a saucepan. Bring just to a boil, stirring constantly until the sugar is completely dissolved. Remove from heat, cool, cover and store in the fridge for up to two weeks.

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